Down Goes Another One
by iluvmusso4ever11390
Summary: After a terrible school shooting that has left many dead and even more shaken, Miley is asked to recall those four terrifying hours and explain why the shooter was so obsessed with keeping her alive.
1. Prologue: The Aftermath

**Hey all!**

**I thought of this idea when I was doing a project for my Creative Writing class and I thought I'd try it out and see what you think. The title is based off of a song by a FABULOUS band from Britain called McFly (not sure how many of you know them, but they are AWESOME). This is a bit like a prequel leading up to the story, so why don't you read it and tell me what you think. **

**Thanks!**

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No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get the horrible sounds out of her head; the sound of terrified screaming; the sound of utter sorrow; the sound of someone taking their last breath. Despite the fact that it had happened hours ago, those sounds were still echoing through her brain as if their sources were right next to her. She clapped her hands over her ears in a frantic attempt to get them to stop.

But at that moment, new sounds reached her ears: officers trying to get information; students crying over lost friends; parents asking desperate questions about their children. Those sounds wouldn't go away either.

"Anyone have info on the shooter?"

"Shot himself before we could take him in."

"But not before the bastard killed my best friend!"

"Stacey! Oh god, Stacey, where's your brother?"

"D-Dead, Mom. H-He was s-s-shot!"

"She's right over there, Detective."

Next second, two officers entered the room and sat down opposite of her. She couldn't look at them and instead looked down at her hands covered in blood. Their blood. She could only imagine how she looked now: face blotchy and tear-stained, hands and shirt stained red with blood, hair messy and tangled, eyes full of fear. She wished the two of them would be with her, helping her to forget this ever happened. But she knew, deep down, that no matter how hard she tried to forget, she knew she would remember this day for the rest of her life.

"Miley, my name is Detective Garrison and this is Detective Brownstone," one of the officers said. His voice was calm and soothing, but it did nothing to calm or soothe her. All she kept remembering was his voice ringing through the hallways, mingling with the sounds of the deadly gunshots.

"Miley, I know that you don't want to think about it right now, but we need you to tell us what happened," Detective Garrison continued. "The shooter is dead, but we still need to know what happened in the classroom. You seemed to be the only one that he was determined not to kill and we need to know why."

She turned her head, unable to look the officer in the eyes. It wasn't that she thought the question was inappropriate because she knew it wasn't, and it wasn't that she couldn't remember what happened—no matter how much she wished she didn't. She didn't know if she could relate the story again. She was still so scared and confused about everything. And the fact that her two best friends weren't there didn't help her either.

"W-Where are Lilly and Oliver?" she asked, her voice still trembling.

She saw Detective Garrison look over at Detective Brownstone who shook his head. "We can't give you any information at the moment," Detective Garrison said. "We're still unsure of everyone."

"Just tell me that they're okay," she said in a louder voice, more tears spilling from their eyes. "Just please tell me that they're…alive."

Detective Garrison looked at the floor. "I suppose you do have a right to know." Her eyes widened and she braced herself for the worst.

"Last I heard, Mr. Oken was in surgery and Ms. Truscott was due in several short minutes," he replied. "I don't have any news on either of their conditions at the moment so that's all I can give you."

She took a deep breath and finally looked up at the officer, nodding to show her thanks. At least they were safe at the moment, but she didn't know how much longer that moment would last. There had been all that blood. Two shots had been fired into Oliver's chest. And how well of a shield was that desk that Lilly had used to defend herself?

"Where's my dad?" she suddenly asked, realizing that she wanted nothing more at the moment than for him to hold her in his arms and tell her that it was going to be all right.

"He's with the other parents," Detective Brownstone replied, speaking for the first time. "The chief of police is giving them an explanation about what happened today. Or rather, as much of it that we know."

"That's why we need you, Miley," Detective Garrison added. "The shooter is dead, but we have his two accomplices in custody and we need your testimony to land them in jail for a long, long time. Do you understand?"

She nodded, but still didn't know if she would be able to relate the story. It had been the most terrifying four hours of her life. Already she could feel her brain trying to block out bits and pieces of what happened. As much as she wanted to forget it all forever, they needed to know the whole story.

"He…he said that he couldn't kill me," she choked out, swallowing back a sob.

"Why, Miley?" Detective Garrison asked.

"I…I don't remember," she stammered untruthfully.

"Yes, you do," Detective Brownstone insisted. "You do remember, but you don't want to so you're trying to convince yourself that you don't."

"Why did he say that he couldn't kill you?" Detective Garrison asked again.

"I…I don't know," she said, her breath catching in her chest. "Please, just let me go home."

"We can't do that now, Miley," Detective Brownstone said. "We need your side of the story before you try to permanently block it out."

"I don't want to remember!" she sobbed, tears spilling down her cheeks. "I don't want to think about it!"

"Miley, all we're asking is for you to tell it now so we can get it on the record," Detective Garrison explained. "After that, you don't have to tell it ever again. Okay?"

She shook her head. "I…I can't! I can't talk about it! I don't know why he wanted me so badly!"

"Yes, you do," Detective Garrison said, his voice still soothing and calm. "Stop trying to convince yourself that you don't. It's what he wanted. He wanted you to be so scared that you would try to convince yourself that you didn't know and, in a sense, 'forget' what happened."

She bit her bottom lip to try to prevent herself from crying out. She knew that the officer was right, but she didn't want to admit it. Retelling the story would only make her relive the memories. So what if it put his friends in jail? It didn't change the fact that over thirty students had been killed (she tried not to think of Lilly and Oliver adding to that body count); it didn't change the fact that there were dozens of grieving parents two rooms down from her; it didn't change the fact that the entire school would be shaken up for who knew how long.

"Miley, listen to me," Detective Garrison said, kneeling down in front of her and putting his hands on her shoulders. "We don't want you to feel uncomfortable. We know that what you just went through was terrible and we know that the last thing you want to do is talk about it. So just take your time, try to remember, and tell us when you're ready."

She sniffed and wiped her eyes, ignoring the blood on her hands that was smearing with the blood already on her cheeks. His blood.

"I have to tell you?" she asked in a shaky voice.

Detective Garrison nodded. "Please, Miley. Is there anything I can get you to make you feel more comfortable? Anything?"

She thought about it, but realized the only thing that would truly make her comfortable would be not telling the story. And it was clear that they weren't letting her out of that. Slowly, she shook her head and whispered, "Okay, I'm ready."

"Good, good," Detective Garrison said. He motioned to Detective Brownstone who turned on a tape recorder and turned back to her. "Just start from the beginning."

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes trying hard to remember. She had picked Lilly up like she always did and the two of them had received a pleasant surprise when they got to their lockers that morning…

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**Okay, now that you already know what happened, you get to see WHY it happened. If you're interested and want me to continue, post some reviews and let me know. Thanks a lot guys!! Hope to hear from you all!**


	2. Something Strange

**Wow! I was blown away by the amount of reviews right away! Thanks so much for your support, everyone. It makes me feel good and makes me want to continue with the story. So, without further ado, let me begin!**

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Chapter One: Something Strange

Miley Stewart yawned and rubbed her eyes wearily as she pulled her car into the high school parking lot. She turned the ignition off and rested her head on the steering wheel, trying to find the energy to open the door.

"Miley? Miley, wake up!" her best friend Lilly Truscott said, shaking her arm. "Wow, I've never seen you this tired before," she added as the two of them got out of the car and headed towards the building.

"I know," Miley replied, yawning again. "I gotta tell Daddy to stop having me play all these late shows Sunday nights. Those fans just wouldn't leave last night."

"I know, I was there," Lilly reminded her. Miley smiled as the two of them entered the school. "So, what do you think Crater's going to have us do in Calc today?" she asked as they reached their lockers.

Miley shrugged. "Something boring, no doubt," she replied. "I still don't even understand why I took this stupid class."

"Because it looks good on college apps," Lilly replied. Miley raised an eyebrow at her. "And…because your counselor said you wouldn't graduate if you didn't," Lilly added.

"Oh yeah, that's right," Miley said. "I knew there had to be a reason. But, seriously, why did I have to have it this hour? Why couldn't I have it fourth hour like the other half of our class?"

Lilly sighed. "It's about him, isn't it?" When Miley didn't say anything, Lilly continued, "Miley, I don't want to sound mean, but you've got to get over it. It's been…what…four months since you guys broke up, right?"

"Yeah," Miley replied. "But, today especially is going to be hard."

"Why?" Lilly asked, but then her eyes widened. "Oh god, it would've been your one-year, wouldn't it?"

Miley nodded. "It's just…I mean…it's hard enough seeing him every day in class. But seeing him today is going to be ten times worse."

"Come on, Miley, you have to forget about it and move on," Lilly said as they got their books for Calculus. "You're better off without him, right?"

"Yeah, I know," Miley said. "But I still feel badly about it. I mean, I broke his heart when we broke up. How am I going to look him in the eye now?"

"Just don't then," Lilly said. "Don't look at him, don't talk to him, don't even look in his general direction. Maybe you'll be lucky and he won't even remember. Guys are never good at remembering things like that, right?"

Miley shrugged again as they headed towards class. "I guess so. You're right. Maybe I'm overreacting. Today is just like any other day."

However, when they reached the Calculus classroom, they received their first huge surprise for the day. Standing outside the classroom was none other than their shaggy-haired, slightly dim-witted, best friend Oliver Oken. Lilly gasped as he caught their eye and walked over to them.

"Oliver! You're home!" she shrieked as she raced forward and gave him a huge hug.

"Yeah," Oliver said, stumbling backwards slightly as Lilly crashed into him. "I take it you missed me?"

"Yeah, I've had no one to make fun of Crater with me in Calc for two weeks!" she exclaimed. "All I've got is Miley. No offense," she added, turning to her friend.

"None taken," Miley said, too tired to even care. "So, what are you doing back so soon, Oliver?" she asked. "I thought you said you were going to be in Colorado until the middle of the week."

"Yeah, we were, but my mom was needed back down at the station so we had to come back early," Oliver explained. "We actually got in late last night. Sorry I didn't come to the show, Miley. I had so much to do with unpacking and everything."

"Don't worry about it," Miley said as they walked into the classroom. "You didn't miss much anyway."

"Are you kidding?" Lilly shouted. "That was one of your best concerts ever last night! You missed one hell of a show is what you missed!"

"Gee, thanks for making me not feel guilty, Lilly," Oliver said with a chuckle.

"It wasn't that great of a show," Miley said. "She was just excited because there was this really cute new stagehand there who said he liked her outfit."

"And my eyes," Lilly said in a dreamy voice as she stared off into space.

"Well, sounds like I missed quite a show," Oliver said, taking his seat next to Lilly.

"Only with the way Lilly tells it," Miley said, sitting down behind him. "If she had taken the time to watch something other than Tom she would have TOTALLY seen that I messed up on two songs last night."

"You did?" Lilly asked shocked. "What? When?"

Miley shook her head. "My point exactly."

"Why did you mess up?" Oliver asked.

Miley shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I was just…dreading today and I couldn't get it off my mind last night."

"Wow, this whole one-year thing is hitting you harder than I thought," Lilly said. "I didn't realize that it was gonna suck this much, Miles."

"Seriously, don't worry about it," Miley said.

"Worry about what?" Oliver asked.

Lilly rolled her eyes. "Typical of guys to not notice anything."

"What?" Oliver said, raising his hands in confusion.

But at that moment, the bell rang, signaling the start of class and the end of Lilly and Oliver's verbal rumble. Their teacher, Mr. Crater, closed the classroom door and walked to the front of the room.

"Good morning, class," he said. "As you know, you recently had a test on Chapter Seven last week and the results were, shall I say, less than impressive."

Lilly leaned over and tapped Miley on the shoulder. "Hey," she whispered under her breath. "Look." She pointed to the seat several rows in front of them. Miley looked to wear she was pointing and saw an empty seat.

"He's not here today," Miley whispered back. "That's weird."

Lilly scoffed. "He's probably at home crying his eyes out over a picture of the two of you or something."

Miley smiled and gave a weak laugh, but it died quickly. She didn't know what it was but something made her feel uneasy.

Just then, as Mr. Crater was in the middle of his speech about how they were all going to fail his class unless another test on the same material wasn't given immediately, everyone's attention was instantly directed to a disturbance out in the hallway.

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"_And that's when we heard it," Miley said, looking back at her shoes, a shiver running down her spine._

"_What did you hear, Miley?" Detective Garrison asked. _

_Miley looked back up at him, her big brown eyes widening with fright as she replied with three small words:_

"_The first gunshot."_

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**So so so SOOO sorry for the long wait, everyone. I've been SOOO busy lately but it is that time of year (I'm talking, of course, about the school play). My rehearsals have been taking up more and more of my time lately and most of my free time is being eaten up by work as well. And I'm sorry if this chapter seems a little rushed. I hate to say this but I didn't really have an intro so we're just going to delve into the deep stuff…if that's all right with you guys. Again, thank you all SOOO much for all the wonderful reviews last chapter and I hope to read some more this chapter. Love to hear from you all!!**


	3. The Initial Shock

Chapter Two: The Initial Shock

An explosive crack rang throughout the quiet halls of the school. An instant silence went over Mr. Crater's Calculus class as every head turned toward the classroom door. The silence was quickly broken by the sounds of screams as several students ran past the door, shouting something that was inaudible as another explosive crack rang out, this time sounding closer.

Oliver was the first to get out of his seat and cautiously approach the door as more students ran past, screaming and crying. He peered out the window and craned his neck to look down the hallway. Instantly, his eyes widened and all the color drained from his face.

"Oh shit!" he said under his breath as he turned to face the class. "T-There's a guy down there. And…and he's got a gun!"

At these words, everyone's facial expressions immediately mirrored Oliver's. Several girls started to cry hysterically and frightened talk broke out among the students.

"All right, calm down, class," Mr. Crater said the students, looking like he was having a hard enough time following his own advice. "Let's get into lockdown mode. Mr. Oken, since you are there, lock the door. Ms. Truscott, hit the lights."

Oliver and Lilly did as they were told as the rest of the class headed into the designated corner. Mr. Crater and two other brave students managed to pile several desks in front of the door as a sort of barricade. But no one knew how well it was going to last against a gun-wielding maniac.

Miley felt her heart beating a thousand beats a minute. She couldn't believe that something like this was happening. And on this day of all days. She thought that when he didn't show up at school, everything was going to be okay. Instead, the worst possible thing that could occur was occurring at this very moment.

Footsteps sounded outside the door. Miley reached out and grabbed Lilly's hand who, in turn, grasped Oliver's. The entire class fell deathly silent; it seemed as if no one was even breathing. The footsteps stopped and those closest to the door could see a masked figure standing with his back to the classroom. Miley closed her eyes and prayed that they would assume that this room was empty and keep going.

She looked over at her friends and saw that they were just as scared as she was. Lilly had silent tears pouring down her cheeks and Oliver was visibly trembling. She stared at them, hoping that this wouldn't be the last time she ever looked into their eyes again. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, waiting for the door to break down and the gunshots to start ringing through the room, killing all of them instantly.

But instead, they heard the footsteps begin to walk away from the door. Every breathed a huge sigh of relief. Now all they had to do was find a way to sneak out of the classroom and get to a place where they could be safe and call for help. One by one, the students got shakily to their feet and started to creep towards the door. It seemed as if the plan was going to work.

But at that second, another gunshot sounded and everyone heard the horrible sound of a body hitting the floor right outside the classroom. Miley peeked out the door and saw Jason Daniels, the star running-back for the high school football team, lying on the floor in front of the classroom, a gunshot wound in the back of his head.

As the initial shock of seeing a dead body in front of them began to wear off, a terrible scream rang through the room. Next second, Casey Reynolds, his girlfriend of two years, ran out of the classroom and knelt next to Jason.

"JASON! JASON, WAKE UP! JASON!"

Her screaming was silenced as a bullet flew into her chest and she fell backwards, lying just as still as her boyfriend.

That was enough to convince the students that their position had been discovered and staying in the classroom would only seal their fates as it had Casey and Jason's. Terrified screams were emitted from the mouths of numerous students as they raced out into the hallways.

"Come on! Let's go!" Oliver shouted, grabbing Miley's arm with his free hand and pulling both her and Lilly out of the classroom. He pulled them into the crowd of students, making sure to keep them hidden in the middle so that the shooters couldn't see them.

Miley felt that no one had experienced fear before they had been forced to hear the sounds of gunshots whizzing within inches of their faces. She saw at least three more students fall around them, whether they were dead or just injured, she didn't know nor did she want to stick around long enough to find out.

"Quick! In here!" Oliver said, pulling Miley and Lilly into an empty classroom. Miley saw that the desks were toppled and books and papers were sprawled all over the floor. One light was flickering and another appeared to have been shattered, shards of the bulb scattered all over the floor. The place had clearly been ransacked.

"Why here, Oliver?" she asked.

"Well, it's clear that they've already been in here so I don't think they're going to come back," Oliver replied. "At least, I hope they don't," he added in an undertone.

Just to be on the safe side, Miley shut off the remaining lights, closed and locked the door, and the three of them sat in a corner not visible through the windows. While both she and Oliver were terrified at this point, it was nothing compared to the terror that Lilly was apparently experiencing. Miley had never seen her face looking so pale and sweaty or heard her breathing as heavily as she was.

"Lilly? Lills, are you okay?" Miley asked, turning to her friend with concern. "Lilly, please say something!"

Lilly just shook her head as tears started to fall from her eyes. Her mouth started to form words, but she seemed unable to say anything. She clapped her hands over her ears and began to rock back and forth, her breathing coming in short, hard gasps as she started to hyperventilate.

"Lilly!" Oliver said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Lilly, what's wrong? Lilly, calm down!"

"No!" Lilly shouted, now sobbing. "Never again! Never, ever again!"

"Lilly, what are you talking about?" Miley asked, now sounding frightened as well.

"He…he…he was just….just…_shot_ right in front of us!" Lilly stammered with difficulty through her sobs and heavy breathing. "He _died_ right in front of us!" She clapped her hands over her ears again and started to shout, "Never again! Never, ever again!"

Miley and Oliver knew that they had to get her to quiet down, mostly for fear that their location would be discovered if she continued to shout. Miley looked over at Oliver as if to tell him that she didn't know what to do. But Oliver put both his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face him.

"Lills, look at me," he said softly. She refused at first, but Oliver finally got her to take her hands off of her ears and look up at him, tears still falling from her bright, blue eyes. "It's okay. It's going to be okay. Just calm down now, okay? Don't think about it. Don't think about what we just saw back there, okay? Push it out of your mind."

"I…I can't," Lilly sobbed.

"Yes, you can," Oliver said, his tone very soothing. "Don't even think about it. Pretend that it didn't even happen. Just focus on me right now. I'm not going to let that happen to you, neither is Miley."

"He's right, Lilly," Miley chimed in. "We're going to stick together and get out of this safely. Okay?"

Lilly looked from one friend to the other and gradually got her breathing to slow down. "Are you going to be okay?" Oliver asked.

Lilly thought about it for a second before slowly nodding her head. Miley reached over and put her arms around Lilly, resting Lilly's head on her shoulder. Oliver put his arms around all three of them. As they sat there and hugged, Miley tried to ponder what Lilly had previously been freaking out about. They had seen not one, but at least two students shot in cold blood right in front of them. She couldn't blame Lilly for being scared; that was something she never hoped she would ever have to see.

But deep down inside, all three of them were aware of one very important fact: now that the initial shock had hit, it was time to take serious action.

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**I don't even have words to express how awesome all you readers and reviewers are with your patience. I know that there have been long breaks in between chapters, but I have had no time for ANYTHING lately. But, in less than a month, my play will be over and I'll have free afternoons again (hopefully). So just hang in there and keep being awesome. Love you all!!**


	4. A Solemn Promise

Chapter Three: A Solemn Promise

The firing of gunshots continued outside the classroom, causing the three friends inside to huddle together even closer, praying that they were as well hidden as they liked to think that they were.

"I'm calling for help," Miley said, reaching into her pocket and pulling out her cell phone. She opened it and gave a frustrated cry. "Shit! No signal! Lills, do you have your cell phone?"

Lilly shook her head. "My mom took it away yesterday because I forgot to clean my room again." Despite her terrified trembling, she managed a small scoff. "I'm going to remind her of this moment next time she threatens that."

"What about you, Oliver?" Miley asked, turning to her other friend in utter desperation.

Oliver quickly searched his pockets but came up empty-handed. "Crap! It must still be in my bags. I didn't get the chance to unpack everything last night!"

"Well, it doesn't matter. We probably couldn't get a signal in here anyway," Miley sighed. "Okay, it looks like our best bet is to try to sneak out the door and get help that way."

Oliver somehow summoned to courage to crawl away from their hiding spot, and went right up to the door, kneeling down and pressing his ear to it, listening hard.

"Do you hear anything?" Miley whispered, trying to keep Lilly from freaking out again.

Oliver shook his head. "No. I think he's moved down to the other end of the school." He crawled back over to the two of them. "Okay, it looks like our best bet now would be to cut across the English wing and go out the doors by the football field."

"But that will put us out in the open!" Lilly shouted, thinking about both the vastness of the football field and the wide English hallways.

"I know," Oliver replied. "But it will only be for a second or two. And it's the fastest way out of here. Plus, once we're outside, I think we'll be safe enough to call for help."

Miley nodded. "That sounds like a good idea."

"Okay," Oliver said. "Let's go."

"Wait, guys!" Lilly said, reaching out and grabbing both of their arms. "Before we go, I need you guys to make a promise for me, a solemn promise."

"Sure, Lilly," Oliver said, sitting back down next to her.

"Anything, Lils," Miley added, sitting down next to her as well. "What promise?"

"I need you both to swear that no matter what happens, you won't leave me," Lilly said. "No matter what, the three of us stick together."

"Of course," Oliver said. "We won't leave you. Ever."

"Swear to me, Oliver," Lilly said desperately, pulling him closer to her. He could actually see the tears that were still forming in her light blue eyes.

"I swear to it, Lilly," Oliver said. "I'll make the most sincere, solemn promise I can make."

"Good," Lilly said, nodding to show her satisfaction. She turned to her other best friend. "Miley, what about you?"

Miley nodded. "Cross my heart, Lils. I won't leave your side for anything. I swear."

Lilly nodded again before seizing both of her best friends and hugging them tightly, sobbing onto their shoulders. Miley and Oliver hugged her back, Miley starting to cry as well and Oliver trying his best to hold the tears in. Every single one of them was thinking the exact same thing in the back of their minds: _Please don't let this be the last time I ever see the two of them again._

"Well, girls, we should probably get going," Oliver finally said, sitting up and trying to subtly wipe his eyes on the back of his hand without them noticing. "We're going to get found if we sit in this room any longer."

"I agree," Miley said, wiping her eyes as well. "Come on, Lilly. Let's go."

She and Oliver helped Lilly get shakily to her feet as the three of them crept towards the door. Oliver put his hand on the knob and slowly turned it. But before he opened the door, he turned to the other two.

"I think I should go out and double check that the coast is truly clear," he said.

"What? No!" Lilly half-shouted. "You just promised that you wouldn't leave us, Oliver!"

"I won't go far, Lills," Oliver said. "Look, I'm just going to go over to those lockers and come straight back. I'll be gone less than thirty seconds, okay?"

"But…"

"Okay," Miley said, cutting Lilly off. "But please, Oliver, be careful!"

"I will, I promise," Oliver said. "Back up a little bit."

Miley and Lilly obliged and Oliver gradually opened the door, trying to ignore his shaking hand, took a deep breath, and stepped out into the hallway. Miley and Lilly saw him tiptoe over to a row of lockers, peer up and down the corridor, and then hurried back into the room.

"Okay, I think we're good," he said. "We should be able to get into the English wing undetected and there are plenty of rooms down there that we can take refuge in if we need to."

Miley nodded. "Okay," she said, taking a deep breath. "Let's go."

She grabbed onto Lilly's hand, Lilly grasping back with more force than was perhaps necessary, and grabbed onto Oliver's hand as well. Oliver pulled Lilly closer to him and she pulled Miley closer to her. They all peered down the hallways, far too quiet to ease any of their nerves.

Oliver pulled them into the hallways, but paused and leaned towards Miley. "Whatever you do, don't let Lilly look down the science hallway," he whispered in her ear.

"What?" Miley asked.

"Just…don't," Oliver said. "Come on, guys," he said louder pulling them onward. As they ran to the section of lockers leading to the English wing, Miley got the chance to look down the hallway Oliver had warned her about…and immediately wished that she hadn't.

Bodies covered the floor, whether they were dead, dying, or just unconscious Miley wasn't sure about. And there was blood, lots of blood.

She quickly steered Lilly away from that section of the building, being sure to keep her attention diverted. But Lilly was too preoccupied with making sure that they all stuck together that she didn't even glance in the direction of the hallway. It wasn't until they reached the next set of lockers and Miley breathed a huge sigh of relief did she realize that she had been holding her breath the entire time they had raced across the hallway.

They all froze as they heard gunshots ringing in the distance. Lilly screamed, but Oliver was quick to silence her by putting his hand over her mouth. Miley's eyes widened as she grasped Oliver's arm in fright. They heard screams following the gunshots and then…silence once again.

"It's okay," Oliver said, removing his hand from Lilly's mouth. "He's all the way on the other side of the school. It'll be at least five minutes before he gets down here. That should give us plenty of time to get out."

"Come on, before he decides to come back over here," Miley said. She and Oliver grabbed Lilly's arms and pulled her along with them for she seemed rather reluctant to move all of a sudden.

After what felt like ages, the three of them reached the doors leading to the football field. Miley breathed another huge sigh of relief; safety was just a few steps away. Oliver reached out first, grabbed the handle, pulled, and…nothing. The door remained tightly closed. Oliver tugged on it again and again, but it would not budge.

"What is it? What's going on?" Miley asked.

"I think the door's locked," Oliver replied, tugging it once more but still to no avail. "They must have locked down the school in order to prevent the shooter from escaping."

"But what about us, the students still trapped inside?" Lilly asked in a frightened voice.

"There's got to be an opened door somewhere," Oliver said. "Somewhere they wouldn't think the shooter would know about but we would."

But as they began thinking about where said exit would be, they all heard a sound that nearly made their hearts stop. Another gunshot sounded, so close that it seemed to be coming from the hallway right next to them. They all turned to look at each other, their eyes wide and frightened.

"I thought he was on the other side of the school," Miley whispered. "How did he get all the way over here already?"

"He couldn't have," Oliver replied. Then his eyes widened even more. "There's only one explanation."

"What is that?" Lilly asked, her voice barely audible.

Oliver paused and swallowed with difficulty past a lump in his throat. "There's another shooter in the school."

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**Wow, now I feel really horrible. I've been so sporadic with my chapters AND now I've left you with a DREADED CLIFFHANGER and you STILL are giving me tons of reviews. It's official, you guys are all much better people than I am. Well, I haven't been working as much now thanks to late practice so maybe I'll have some extra time to write. Keep up with the reviews to keep me motivated and I will keep on writing. YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!!!**


	5. Word Gets Out

Chapter Four: Word Gets Out

Both Miley's and Lilly's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates when those words came out of Oliver's mouth. None of them thought that this situation could get any worse, but it appears that it just did. Lilly opened her mouth, but she was too shocked that she found herself unable to scream, which was fortunate because, judging by the proximity of that shot, the shooter was relatively close to them.

"Quickly!" Oliver hissed, his voice barely audible. He grabbed Lilly and Miley's arms again, and pulled them away from the door and behind a section of lockers.

Once certain that they were hidden, he peeked out around the corner and saw another man emerge, dressed all in black, a large rifle in his hands and a ski mask over his face. He looked around the area and then turned his head straight to where Oliver was looking. Oliver quickly withdrew his head back behind the locker, but the approaching footsteps meant that the shooter had seen something.

Without a sound, Oliver pulled the girls down the hallway, rapidly turned a corner, opened a random classroom door, and threw the three of them into it, shutting the door just as the other shooter rounded the corner as well. Once inside, they sat with their backs to the door, hugging each other tightly, shivering uncontrollably with fright. Both Miley and Lilly were silently sobbing now.

The shooter paused outside of the classroom door for several painstakingly long seconds, but then, to their immense relief, he headed off down the hall in the opposite direction, most likely going to rejoin his partner.

It took a minute before any of them could get over their terror enough to spit out a few words. Finally, Miley found the courage to speak.

"There's…there's _two _of them?" she gasped. "How the hell are we going to figure out a way to get around _two _of them?"

"Don't worry, Miley," Oliver replied, trying to keep any trace of fear out of his voice. "We'll figure something out. The police have to be on their way soon. And when they get here, we're all going to be fine." But the skepticism was evident in his voice and it did anything but calm anyone's nerves. Oliver wasn't even sure if he believed himself.

"What do you think we should do?" Miley asked, trying to hide the fear in her voice.

"Wait," Oliver replied. "We wait until someone comes to get us."

"But, what if it's not the right people who find us?" Miley asked.

Oliver shook his head. "That's not going to happen."

Unable to say anything else, the three of them huddled together in a corner, their arms wrapped protectively around each other, and prayed that this nightmare would soon be over.

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"And Walker looks down the field for an open receiver. Ten seconds left on the clock and the Giants are down by a field goal."

Jackson Stewart stared intently at the game, his eyes never blinking for fear that he would miss a second of this action. His face was less than a foot from the screen due to the fact that he had moved from the couch to the living room floor as the action intensified.

"And Walker passes it to Downing. He catches it, runs straight into the defense and…hold cow! He broke through the defense! He's running down the field. He looks unstoppable!"

"Go! Go!" Jackson shouted, standing up and preparing himself for his victory dance. He could not believe that his dad was missing this right now. It was so intense. Downing cleared the through the defensive line. He was at the 30…the 20…the 10…and…

"We interrupt this program to bring you a shocking news update." The Giants' football game was immediately replaced with the face of a female reporter sitting at a desk. On the screen behind her were the words "Breaking News" in big, bold letters.

"Oh come on!" Jackson screamed loudly. "Are you kidding me? What could be more important than this?"

Jackson continued his complaining as the reporter began her story, not really taking in what she was saying.

"We have received recent news that shots have been fired within the halls of Seaview High School."

Jackson immediately stopped his ranting as the name of his former high school reached his ears. He wasn't' sure if he heard right, but it sounded like the words "shots have been fired" had preceded it. Instantly, he went back over to the television and was staring at it as intently as he had been staring at the football game mere seconds ago.

"Police have received confirmation that at approximately 7:55 this morning, a young man dressed all in black entered the building and opened fire automatically. We do not have news yet on how many are dead or injured but we are going to keep you posted with live coverage."

Jackson's eyes were three times their normal size now and his jaw had dropped nearly to the floor. The screen had switched to a live overhead shot of the school. Jackson could see students sprinting out of the building. Most of them were crying hysterically; several were bleeding; and some even collapsed into the lawns and did not get back up.

"Oh my…Dad!" he shouted up the stairs. "Dad! I think you need to see this!"

Robbie Ray Stewart came down the stairs, carrying his acoustic guitar in one hand and a piece of paper in the other. "What is it, son? I'm kinda in the middle of something right now."

"Dad, please tell me there's another Seaview High School around here," Jackson said, his eyes still glued to the screen.

"Not that I know of," Robbie Ray replied, still looking at the paper in his hand. "Why do you ask?" he added suspiciously.

"Come look at the TV and you'll know what I mean," Jackson said, beckoning his father to come over without taking his eyes off the screen.

"Didn't they at least teach you in college not to sit so close to the television, son?" Robbie Ray asked as he walked over. "Don't you know it's bad for your…oh my—"

He paused and his expression instantly mirrored Jackson's as he finally looked at the screen and read the words scrolling along the bottom, telling the story as it continued to unfold. Both father and son were silent as the reporter came on again with more news.

"Detective Garrison has just told me some shocking news. Detective?"

"We have received rumored reports that there are in fact at least two shooters inside the school," replied the police chief, sounding as though he was on a speakerphone. "We're not completely positive, but we're pretty certain that there are only two of them at this moment. We want to reassure all the parents out there that we are doing everything in our power to stop this."

"Do we have any confirmed reports on a death count?" the reporter asked.

"Not at the moment," Detective Garrison replied. "But it looks pretty bad right now."

"Jackson, get in the car," Robbie Ray said, setting the guitar down and grabbing his car keys in almost one movement.

"We're going down there?" Jackson asked. "Where people are being _shot _at?"

"Of course we're going down there!" Robbie Ray said fiercely. "Because your sister is one of those people who are being shot at! Now get in the car!"

Not wasting another moment, Jackson switched off the television, grabbed his coat, and ran after his father who was already out the door. He remembered all those people who he saw on the screen running across the school grounds, hurt and bleeding, and desperately prayed that one of them wasn't his sister.

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Five minutes. How could it have only been five minutes? It seemed to Miley, Lilly, and Oliver that they had been sitting in that biology room for at least hours, none of them moving from their cramped locations for fear that the slightest movement could cause the shooters to detect them. They had heard rumors that the cops had been called, but shots could still be heard ringing throughout the hallways meaning that either the rumor was crap or that the cops weren't doing a very good job.

Another shot sounded like the crack of a whip, startling all of them once again and causing them to huddle together closer. Lilly gave a frightened squeal and Oliver squeezed her tighter. Miley tried hard not to think about what the body count was at currently. She thought of her other friends in other parts of the school and wondered if they were okay. Her heart nearly skipped a beat as she thought about Jackson, but then relaxed slightly when she remembered that he was in college now.

"Hey, guys," Oliver said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I think I should go out in the hallway and see if I can cause a distraction to get the shooter away from this area so you guys can escape."

But Lilly was already shaking her head before he had even finished. "No, no, definitely not. We swore we were going to stick together. If you're going out there, then we all are."

"And besides, there's another shooter too," Miley said, trying to keep her voice from shaking. "Just because you distract one doesn't mean the other one isn't going to find us."

"But we can't sit here like this forever," Oliver replied. "Eventually we're going to be discovered."

"Or the cops will find us after they get the shooter," Miley said. "We seem to be fine right now, Oliver. As long as we're not in immediate danger, I don't think we should move."

"Miles, there's two armed gunmen in the school," Oliver replied. "We're always going to be in immediate danger until they are caught or killed."

Miley was about to retaliate when the three of them suddenly heard a sound coming from the other side of the room. Scuffling was coming from inside the closet where the goggles and aprons were kept. Then, to their horror, the door slowly began to open.

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**I feel like such a horrible person making you wait so long for a new chapter. My free time has totally died recently and that damn writer's block came back. Sorry guys. Good news though: it's PLAY WEEKEND!! A show tonight and a show tomorrow and then I'm DONE!! Plus, Thanksgiving weekend is next week so I'll try to get up at least one chapter. I should try to give you two since you guys deserve it for having to wait. So, if you're still reading and you don't completely hate me, reviews would be lovely. Thanks SOO much!!**


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